I make a lot of rissotto's....they're very easy but a bit tedious as you can to constantly be watching and stirring them.

Mushroom rissotto is lovely and you can use all different kinds of mushrooms.

I'm a bacon addict so always put that in!

You need a good arborio rice, good stock and some good parmesan type cheese and then you can add pretty much anything you want!

Heat olive oil in a deep pan, gently fry a chopped onion and clove of garlic for a couple of minutes then add the rice. Stir and cook for a couple of minutes (you can add a glass of white wine here if you want) and as it begins to turn golden start adding the stock. Only add a cup/ladel full at a time and stir until the liquid has been absorbed by the rice. Keep adding/stirring until the liquid's all been evaporated and the rice is al dente. Add things like bacon/mushrooms/cooked veg etc almost at the end (in the last 5 mins or so) and then stir in the parmesan just before serving.

It should be very creamy and not dry when served. If it's too watery, add a bit of milk instead of stock in one of the ladels (I make the stock with half water half milk).

I make a very lazy "risotto" by just rinsing normal rice, and putting it in the saucepan after the onions and garlic have been softened, adding the necessary amount of stock and cooking as normal. I add chopped meat and veg to the pot as to the timings needed and stir once in a while to make sure it doesnt stick. Thats probably not technically a risotto but Im happy with it, and I use use whatever rice I have in the cupboard.

Nigella had a butternut "orzotto" (barely instead of rice) in her Christmas book, I might try that sometime if I ever see the recipe again. Apparently its much easier than making risotto.

Id probably make more rice dishes because I love them, if it weren't for DH "not seeing the point" of rice